The opinion Leader I admire is His excellency Paul Kagame. The president of the Republic of Rwanda.
I follow him on 3 social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. )
https://twitter.com/PaulKagame
https://www.facebook.com/PresidentPaulKagame/?ref=br_rs
https://www.youtube.com/user/presidentkagame
The significant ideas President Kagame espouses are;
The ideas that dignity is a virtue we can only earn from other after we give it to ourselves first. Secondly that humility is the basis of worthwhile leadership.
These ideas are in tandem with the values I espouse as a pastor. God has given us a dignity by making us part of his family and we as Christ followers need to embrace this dignity and as a leader I preach that uncompromisingly. I also believe that servant leadership is build on humility as a foundation and is one prescribed and exemplified by our Lord Jesus and it is one I subscribe to as a leader.
The advice I would give my president is to regularly use his social media platforms to give leadership nuggets and wisdom from his experience as a leader more regularly because he has a strong following especially in Africa.
- How do the leader’s values, ethics, or principles align with your own regarding leadership? (2 marks)
Below is how 2 of my president’s value align with mine;
My president values family. He is a present father and husband to his wife. The value of family is near and dear to me.
My president values and admonishes our people’s potential by constantly rallying them to strive to do better for the sake of our country. I as a pastor, I notice, nurture and encourage potential in the people I’m charged with constantly in my sphere of influence.
What a powerful concept: “Dignity is a virtue we can only earn from others after we give it to ourselves first.” I would love to know more of your thoughts on what this means to you in your leadership role.
Leaders who are able to inspire people to a bigger, better life often seem to be able to articulate “big ideas” like this in powerfully inspiring ways, while others seem to ignore the deep values and essence of humanity. Do you think it takes a special type of courage to speak truth about concepts like dignity?
— Leadership Prof
Thank you Prof,
As a leader in the context of Rwanda, a small nation that suffered the fastest genocide in history and perhaps the most devastating one in our generation, I have seen that it takes a uniqueness to leadership, to articulate certain virtues to those that are being led. The current leader has had the task of re-infusing hope and dignity in the people of Rwanda so that they can rebuild and keep moving despite the challenges of our recent history.
Dignity, which was lost has been the bedrock of rebuilding our nation. And as a church leader, It has been a steep but fulfilling task to encourage the youth to strive towards a wholesome dignity. Inspiring people to embrace and accept who they are and find joy in the very fact that they are Rwandan and that God has a plan for them and can use both our horrible experience through the genocide and our resolve never to go down that path again, is something I find joy doing. And i learn a lot from what the leader of our nation does in this effect.
It takes a special kind of courage to speak about concepts like dignity in the context of leading a nation like Rwanda. As a nation, one of the foundational causes of the genocide 24 years ago was a lack of dignity and a lack of respect for humanity. The leaders of the day perpetuated a lie that a certain group of people were not worth living. This dehumanized some people and they fell victim to their fellow neighbors and they were hacked to death.
This being my context, where a nation is being led to reclaim their dignity and its effects like caring for one another and considering our neighbors, has caused us to rebuild through the odds. This has been a direct result of good leadership and i count myself honored to serve in a small way, a leadership role to see this change happen